The Associated Press

KENT, Ohio - Kent State University said it will raise tuition 6 percent to 9 percent this fall, depending on the severity of state cuts to higher education.

Full-time undergraduate students attending the Kent main campus will pay a minimum of $6,758 or a maximum of $6,950 a year - $384 to $576 higher than the current tuition rate of $6,374.

The university's board of trustees approved the increase Thursday.

It follows an 8.5 percent tuition increase last May, which was the largest in a decade.

University President Carol Cartwright said Kent State is trying to keep costs down while still providing quality programs.

"We are in the position where we have to be in charge of our own destiny," she said. "We have to look at what we can control and be the best we can be."

During the last two years, state lawmakers and Gov. Bob Taft have cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to higher education.

Lawmakers are still debating higher education funding for the budget year beginning July 1. Taft recommended a small increase, while the House cut funding by 3 percent.

The Senate version, approved last week, would provide a 3.8 percent increase over the House proposal.